The white nationalist “Unite the Right 2” rally, scheduled to take place on Sunday evening in Lafayette Square just north of the White House, turned out to be a spectacular flop. The demonstration faced overwhelming, well-organized opposition—even the public transit system and the weather seemed not to cooperate.

The rally was planned for the one-year anniversary of the Unite the Right rally of white supremacists and neo-Confederates in Charlottesville, Virginia, which turned violent and resulted in the death of counter-protester Heather Heyer.

Event organizer Jason Kessler, who also coordinated the first deadly Unite the Right rally last year, anticipated a turnout of more than 400 fellow white supremacists for this year’s anniversary rally to celebrate “white civil rights.” On the ground, however, it became quickly apparent that the expected turnout would not materialize.

Problems for the neo-Nazis arose at the Vienna Metro Station, in Fairfax County, Virginia. According to the Unite the Right website, attendees were instructed to convene in Vienna at 2 p.m., and then transit from there at 3 p.m. to the Foggy Bottom station in the District for an ensuing march on Lafayette Square, where the rally would officially begin.

A massive law-enforcement presence at the station meant that Kessler and his immediate entourage left the Vienna Metro Station at 2:15, not 3, forcing tardy Kessler acolytes to ride to the protest without their cohorts. Kessler complained that the police were “messing” with him.

There were reportedly a couple dozen neo-Nazis in attendance. But in person, it seemed like less.

Furthering Kessler’s Metro woes, the system is undergoing some nearly unprecedented upgrades, resulting in temporary station closures and slow travel times. On most other weekends, Kessler and his crew would have had any number of downtown Metro stations to choose from, but due to station closures, ralliers had to walk nearly a mile to their protest site, providing ample opportunity for counter-protestors to yell invectives at them.

Indeed, there were lonely white supremacists who would have accompanied Kessler on his journey into town, but who had to chase behind him instead. In one instance, police prevented a late, would-be Unite the Right rallier from joining his “people,” in a tense encounter that included counter-demonstrators haranguing law enforcement.

There were reportedly a couple dozen neo-Nazis in attendance. But in person, it seemed like less. The counter-protestors, however, were numerous and diverse. Thousands of people—including members of Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and LGBT groups—were waiting to meet Kessler when he arrived at Foggy Bottom. The crowd also gathered in Lafayette Square, and spilled out onto the surrounding blocks.

The anti-Kessler protestors were generally peaceful, and even joyous, when eclipsing the neo-Nazi rally. Black-clad protestors, however, did chant violent rhetoric, and eventually scuffled with police, following the protest.

And while Kessler did succeed in holding court with nearly two dozen people in full view of the White House, lightning and rain, and being forcefully escorted out by law enforcement about forty-five minutes before the scheduled 5:30 p.m. rally, prompted the neo-Nazis to pack it in early. The protesters in Lafayette Square, meanwhile, continued to dance and sing.